Reminder that during the Gilded Age in Hot Springs, one of the main tourist attractions was an Ostrich Farm where you could ride them.
The past was a very, very strange place.
#HotSpringsHistory #Arkansas #WeirdHistory
The editor of the local paper and the Mayor of Hot Springs once had a literal shootout in the middle of town.
After they both recovered from their wounds, they became next-door neighbors.
No, really.
#HotSpringsHistory #StrangerThanFiction
2/2: And meet Charles Matthews, the editor they murdered in broad daylight for printing the truth. Read the full, insane story now. www.hotspringshistories.com/p/the-acid-p...
#TrueCrime #HotSpringsHistory #Arkansas
1/3: The story of Hot Springs is always about the rich & famous. But who actually did the work? Our new article, "We Bathe the World," tells the story of the unseen laborers who built the American Spa. #HotSpringsHistory
Ever wonder who had to scrub the tubs after the Gilded Age millionaires were done soaking?
Tomorrow, we're telling the story of the forgotten workers who built and ran the American Spa. It's a side of Hot Springs history you've never heard.
#HotSpringsHistory #LaborDay #Arkansas
Happy Labor Day from Hot Springs!
Today, we’re honoring the unseen army of attendants, builders, and porters who built the “American Spa.” Our new article this Wednesday tells their incredible story.
#LaborDay #HotSpringsHistory #Arkansas
You know the beautiful promenade in front of Bathhouse Row? In the 1880s, it was an open sewer called Hot Springs Creek. 🤢
They literally paved over it. Just another wild chapter in Spa City history.
#HotSpringsHistory #Arkansas #GildedAge
1/3: History Spotlight: The Skirmish at Farr's Mill (July 1864). This wasn't a huge battle, but it perfectly captures the brutal reality of the Civil War in Hot Springs. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
2/2: But Governor Rector's hasty retreat isn't the real story. It's what happened after he left that nearly destroyed the town. #CivilWar #Arkansas #HotSpringsHistory
Before Florida and Arizona, MLB spring training happened in Hot Springs, AR. Legends like Babe Ruth came to "boil out the winter" in the thermal baths and hit legendary home runs—one supposedly landed in an alligator farm. ⚾ #BaseballHistory #HotSpringsHistory
What was the most critical ingredient in the creation of Bathhouse Row? #HotSpringsHistory
🔥 The 1878 Fire
👷 Burying the Creek
⚔️ Capitalist Egos
🏦 Gov't Intervention
Learn how competitive spite created a palace with a bowling alley in the basement. Exclusive for paid subscribers. www.hotspringshistories.com/p/the-palace... #HotSpringsHistory #Architecture
We explore the "Great Fire" of 1878, the Herculean effort to bury a creek, and the "architectural arms race" between Gilded Age capitalists that gave us the stunning buildings we see today. It's a wild ride. #HotSpringsHistory #Architecture
Before Bathhouse Row was a row of palaces, it was a bunch of tinderboxes waiting for a spark. The spark came in 1878.
Tomorrow, we're telling the story of how fire, floods, and furious egos accidentally created an American masterpiece. #HotSpringsHistory #ArkansasHistory
In the 19th century, "taking the waters" in Hot Springs wasn't a luxury; it was medicine. Doctors prescribed bathing regimens to cure everything from arthritis to alcoholism. This belief in a water-based miracle cure built an entire city. #HotSpringsHistory #MedicalHistory
Meet Owney "The Killer" Madden, one of NYC's most feared gang bosses. Where did he choose to retire? Not Florida. Hot Springs, Arkansas.
He moved there, married the postmaster's daughter, and became a respected local. A wild chapter in the city's history. #HotSpringsHistory #GangsterHistory
"Taking the Waters" in Hot Springs was the OG wellness trend. Doctors literally prescribed bathing routines in opulent bathhouses to cure ailments. It was part medicine, part luxury, and 100% a scene. 💧 #HotSpringsHistory #SpaHistory
Fact: In 1899 Hot Springs, the cops had a gunfight... with the other cops.
The City PD and the County Sheriff's Dept. literally shot it out on Central Avenue over who got to control the town's gambling money. This place has always been wild. #HotSpringsHistory #Arkansas #TrueCrime
Without Toussaint Louverture, the map of the United States would look completely different today. #HotSpringsHistory
Read about his political and philosophical dilemma in the full article. www.hotspringshistories.com/p/how-a-slav... #HotSpringsHistory
The story is LIVE. The most important event in Hot Springs history happened 1,700 miles away. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
We connect all the dots tomorrow morning. Get ready. www.hotspringshistories.com/p/how-a-slav.... #HotSpringsHistory
A quick trip to the archives to see what happened after the 1899 shootout we posted about this week. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
The most chilling part of our new story isn't the gunfight itself. It's what happened right after. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
The story is live. The day the law broke down in Hot Springs. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
Get ready. Our new story drops tomorrow, and it's a wild one. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
Before we get into this week's story of violence and corruption, let's remember where it all started. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
Time for some Sunday storytelling. What's the wildest, most "that can't be true" story you know about Hot Springs? 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
On July 12, 1911, work officially began on the Maurice Bathhouse. #HotSpringsHistory
Let's step into the time machine. Hot Springs, circa 1880. 🧵 #HotSpringsHistory
